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Venice under water

Flooding in Venice is pretty common, but the most recent flood left 70% of central Venice under water. I'm amazed by how people seem to be taking it in stride—ordering espresso, having pizza for lunch and even swimming in Piazza San Marco!

75 comments:

Nothing gives me the heebie-jeebies worse than watching people swim in flood waters. After working in a city pool and finding all the gross things that get into an actual controlled and chlorinated pool I can only imagine what's in that water.

wow, i was just there in september and our gondolier told us they get flooding several times a year and they have play alarms so people can run home and move their furniture to safety, but it was hard to imagine. now i know! thanks so much for sharing!

I "lived" there for a few weeks two winters ago and it flooded every morning. for me, there was nothing more exciting than going to breakfast in a bar where everyone acted completely normal. i had my boots and everything :) they are building this mechanism to stop "l'acqua alta" (i understand why, it's not very hygienic etc), so i feel like i veneziani are enjoying it now more than ever because they know these might be the last years. how would you feel if they took away from you something you've always had (and always been annoyed by)? i think we'll all miss it.

I've been in Venice before when it was flooded like that and it's definitely a crazy sight. What I don't get is why with the amount of pigeon poop in Piazza San Marco ANYONE would strip down and go swimming! I scrubbed my feet until they were red after wading through those nasty waters. Yuck.

I spent a summer in Italy and was in Venice when it flooded like that. It was the most fun, carefree experience I have ever had. It was thrilling to run through the streets splashing water everywhere. Thank you for reminding me of that happy time!

this is fun, but I honestly question the timing of your post given that parts of the NYC area was just recently under water, and has suffered so much damage. Not fun for us, especially those who had houses literally float away. I'm surprised at this post.

When I went to the Architecture Biennale di Venezia two years ago, Venice was flooded too. There where tables outside, so you could walk through Venice, useing the tables like a catwalk. The flood changed every day. One day there was flood in the hotel lobby in the morning and in the afternoon San Marco was dry. It was crazy and amazing, and the tables looked very comical, after the flood was gone.

When I went to Venice in 2004, I had no idea that I was arriving during flooding season. (I was backpacking, and didn't do much research beyond "where next? Should we read that section in 'let's go europe?') A woman on the train was wearing knee-high boots and asked if we'd brought ours. Nope. But they did have catwalks and planks set up all through the flooded area to help other tourists like me who didn't bring boots.

but I guess when it is that common and not so destructive (why is that, anyone know?)... the show must go on. i remember seeing photos of people drinking wine at patios under water like it was no big thing. pretty awesome, but i'd be sick thinking, scratch that obsessing over everything floating around in those murky waters...ewwwww!

I live near Venice and I can tell you those people are for sure tourists, infact for people who live in Venice floods are really a fuss, it happens quite often.My brother (he runs this hotel there: http://www.capozzoinn.com/it/) goes crazy during floods days, he has so much to do and so many guests to help with their needs..

My parents just visited Venice last month, and my mom sent me these pictures and remarked how lucky they were to have been there before the flooding. I'm surprised the floods haven't gotten more press, but I guess they're a fairly regular occurrence.

As a Venetian I assure you we HATE floods. The people in the pictures are TOURISTS. It sucks when you have to run your daily errands in the city centre and the water reaches above your knees... also because in Venice the only means of transport is your own feet really.And that water is lagoon water, dirtied by careless tourists who basically use it as if it was just a massive waste bin. So no, it's not clean. Yes, it kind of stinks. Your feet kinda go numb no matter how many layers of socks you can wear inside your rain and fisher boots. Yes, it does damage buildings. But after almost 2000 years we sort of came to terms with what we can and what we cannot do about it...

I was there on sunday because of the architecure biennale and the worst thing was that an orienteering competition took place that morning, so everyone was running everywhere in the flood, splashing all around!

The Venetians are not taking it in stride. The people in these photos are clearly not locals. The flood that devastated parts of northern Italy is no laughing matter. I find it odd that you can post a "happy" post about flooding so soon after hurricane Sandy. Just because Venice is a tourist town, and this may seem amusing or even a fantasy to some, does not mean that the areas just outside Venice are as delighted. This is a flood, not a Disneyride. Optimism is wonderful, but realism is as well.

That's so crazy! I saw one of the pictures of people in the lounge chairs somewhere else, CNN I think, and was super confused (mostly because I didn't click to read the full story). I can't imagine just going about my life in a flood like that! I guess that's a place where you really need to invest in a good pair of rain boots.

This is so creepy to me! Especially the last photo! The type-A part of me keeps wondering things like, how do they keep from getting electrocuted or what happens to all the wood under the counters and stuff. Crazy!

We live in a super flood prone neighborhood (Sandy related images here: http://croquetncocktails.blogspot.com/2012/10/monday-update-sandy-packs-mean-punch.html) and I just get the heebie-jeebies when people play, splash, swim in the water. Poop, people, poop. Poop is in the water... Anyway, I think going to a cafe in your wellies is absolutely necessary. After all, desperate times call for caffeine and pastries!!! Just don't swim in that stuff!!

Hi Jo - We were on a weekend break in Venice when it happened. Acutally the locals were taking it very well - there was a lot of good humour going round and the shopkeepers were taking it in their stride. Some photos here: http://www.quirkytravel.com/cities/acqua-alta-venice/

It was indeed cold and I do agree that these people were slightly mad going for a swim. Apparently Katharine Hepburn ended up with runny eyes for the rest of her life after catching an infection having been pushed into a Venetian canal for a scene in a film.

Luckily when I visited Venice on my honeymoon last September it was not flooded - this does NOT look fun for locals and tourists alike! I agree with the other commenters, that water is probably so disgusting...

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Because readers should only care about NY/NJ?If she'd posted this following any other major flood in the last few years, you wouldnt've batted an eyelid. I was caught in some very bad floods in Australia last year, but I wouldn't have thought to whinge if a local blogger had posted these at the time. I would've appreciated the distraction, and the ability of venezians to make the most of a bad situation.She didn't make the flood happen, she's sharing pictures which are being shared the world over. Venice is flooding too, other people are coping with the will of the weather too. I personally think it's interesting to see these pictures.

Worth noting that all of the people swimming in the photos (as well as those looking so happy in the cafe) are tourists, not Venetians. Venetians know that acqua alta is full of trash and bacteria (this is the same water that's been sweeping through garbage dumps), not to mention cold and smelly, not to mention you don't know what's on the ground if you put your foot down (broken glass, for example). Yes, Venetians take it in stride, but swimming in it is, unfortunately, the kind of dumb thing that only those on vacation would do, not those who live there.